What a tree service lead is worth.
Run your own math, not an agency's slideshow. Say a booked removal clears $700 after crew and equipment, and half the callers book:
$700
kept from a booked removal
half the calls
turn into booked work
≈ $350
what each lead is worth to you
Pay $60–$120 for something worth $350 and the argument is over. Tree work has a wide ticket range — a $250 trim and a $4,000 crane removal come from the same search — so the job types you switch on and the questions the form asks decide what the average lead is worth. Ballparks, not promises; the audit call runs it with your book.
Ballpark for the metro: $300–$800 trims · $800–$3,000 removals · $100–$400 stump grinding · storm emergencies at a premium.
Ranges are market ballparks for context, not client claims. Bring your real book to the audit call — we use yours, not mine.
Certified and insured wins the comparison.
Homeowners can't judge a cut. They can judge "ISA certified arborist," "fully insured," and thirty photos of a clean lawn after a removal. The map listing's primary category has to be Tree service, the description has to say the insurance and certification in the first line, and the reviews have to mention cleanup — because cleanup is what homeowners are afraid of.
Ask for the review at the truck while the lawn is still raked. Posting daily won't move the ranking; reviews and photos will. How I run the listing →
Storm season is set up in the sunshine.
The crews that own the week after the storm were verified in the ads months earlier, with a weekly budget that stayed on and a response rate near 100%. When the wind hits, their ads are already ranked and the homeowner's first call goes to them. Set the screening up in the quiet season, keep emergency hours honest on the listing, and answer the phone at 6 a.m. after the storm — the marketing did its job before the storm did. How I run these ads →
The planned work comes from the website.
Removals and trims are researched: "how much does it cost to remove a tree," "tree trimming {city}," "stump grinding near me." A site with a page per job type, price ranges and a photo-quote form ranks for those searches all year and hands you the planned work between storms. It's also where the homeowner checks your insurance claim before the crew climbs. How I build sites that rank →
Where's the proof?
The proof is my father's drywall company — 52 charged ad leads in July 2026 at $39.89 apiece, a five-star listing, and a website that rings on its own. Tree tickets are several times a drywall patch and the storm searches are more urgent, which is exactly why the same engine is the bet — and why the first leads land before you pay.
